BIRMINGHAM, Ala.- While a bright future lays ahead, the Cold Springs Lady Eagles fell just short of glory in 2025-26.
On Friday morning, Cold Springs faced off with the number one-ranked 2A team in the state in North Sand Mountain with the State Championship title on the line. The Lady Bison’s speed was overwhelming from the jump, and helped build a lead early, eventually taking a 24-13 lead into the break. In the second half, while Cold Springs found discipline and some momentum, the Lady Bison pulled away late to seal a 41-28 victory to win the 2A girls state title.
The Bison’s mission on defense was clear: to take Ella Dickerson out of the game on offense. It was reminiscent of the late-1980s Pistons’ “Jordan rules,” as every time the Cold Springs star touched the ball, she was mobbed. Two, sometimes three defenders pulled off their assignments to poke the ball away from Dickerson, who only got two shots off in the first half.
With Dickerson unable to play a role on offense, the Bison thrived. Star point guard Kayden Reyes, the eventual State Tournament MVP, got scoring going with a layup. North Sand’s defense forced seven first quarter turnovers, which they thrived off of in the open court on offense. Reyes and Abby Shaffer took turns dealing blows, building an early 9-0 lead for the Bison. After another bucket by Reyes, Cold Springs found the hoop finally found the hoop with under a minute to go in the first, with Paizley Whitlow getting set and draining a three off a pick from Dickerson. Later, Whitlow put back a missed shot to get the Eagles their second basket, making it a 14-5 score at the end of one, with Cold Springs only hitting 2-14 from the floor.
In the second, the Bison’s defense tightened up, only allowing the Eagles four shot attempts. Contrasting the first quarter, the Eagles started hitting the good looks they seldom found. Macie Huffstutler picked a pass and took it back for a lay, Hollyn Bruer shook a defender for a hook shot and Aleah Addison found the bucket off a steal from Huffstutler. They’d go 3-4 from the floor, but were unable to keep up with North Sand’s speed on offense. Shaffer gave Cold Springs trouble, scoring five in the period to help build the Bison’s 24-13 halftime lead.
“We weren’t hitting our shots. We couldn’t make anything… we were getting shots and I just think once we had that talk, we came together and said ‘focus on defense and the offense will come. Then we started focusing on boxing out and rebounding to try and get the ball, try to feed into our offense,” Bruer said on their halftime adjustments.
In the third quarter, those adjustments were apparent. Cold Springs was playing with a new energy, one that got them off to a 7-2 start to the third quarter to make it a 20-26 game after layups from Huffstutler and Addison came off of steals forced by the Eagles. With both defenses playing so tight, the game got messy in the third, both teams had players hitting the deck to fight for loose balls, and there was a period of no scoring that lasted almost two minutes. After a beautiful feed from Reyes to Shaffer broke the ice, Dickerson finally found a FG with a three pointer to make it a five-point, 28-23 deficit for Cold Springs at the end of the third.
The final frame saw the hopes of a comeback extinguished, as the Bison returned to form with two quick layups from Shaffer and Reyes. They’d get momentum back on their side, and ride it to the end of the game, with Reyes sealing a 41-28 win and the 2A girls State Championship with a pair of free throws.
“What a game. I don’t think many people expected us to be here, playing the number one team. I felt like we battled, and I felt like it was a really fun 2A Girls State Championship,” Cold Springs head coach Paige Adams said after the game.
It’s been an incredible first season at the helm for Adams, who took over the program after the departure of her former head coach, the legendary Tammy West. After the game, Eagles’ star Ella Dickerson told the press “she’s been the best coach this year. Stepping in, she brought it into perspective, she brought so much joy, so much energy to practice every single day. She pushed every single one of us to be better every day. We knew every day, walking into practice and leaving practice that she was our number one fan, she believed in us more than anybody else.”
While key players like Dickerson, Bruer and Whitlow will move on this offseason, the future of the Eagles couldn’t be in better hands.
Leading the Eagles in scoring was, despite a tough day, Dickerson, who had seven points, three rebounds, two steals and a block. Behind her, both Bruer and Addison score six.
Dickerson and Whitlow were both named to the All-Tournament team.
